This is a sequel, please read 'Perfect' before reading this as it is spoilery!
Sorry for dropping off the face of the earth, it's taken a lot of effort to piece together the plotline for this sequel but I hope you like it!
The rating is subject to change in later chapters
Thank you to Alibody for helping me construct this story and for all the beautiful artwork she made for this series! Love you! :D
Something warm is pressing against Kurt's stomach, prodding and poking him painfully. He can feel the familiar, tiny sharp needles stabbing into him repeatedly. The wires – they must have fixed them – are focused around his abdomen. His stomach clenches at the sensation and he seems to have forgotten how to move. He can't help but panic in his confused and dazed state and he can't seem to remember anything except Blaine but where is Blaine now? He isn't there. Kurt is alone. He can see the white walls around him, and make out a blurred reflection in the immaculately shiny floor but at the same time he has a peculiar sense of awareness that this isn't possible. That he's not there and that everything just…isn't. He can't find words to describe it; he can barely remember how to say anything so instead of calling out for someone to help, he lies – or perhaps he sits, Kurt can't quite tell – and waits.
The prodding against his stomach grows temporarily more violent, stabbing and jabbing until it seems to settle, a warm, slightly heavy feeling takes its place and the pain almost instantly vanishes. Kurt can't tell if it's pleasant or not but at least it doesn't cause him pain for the time being.
Overwhelmed with the need to understand what they're doing to him now, Kurt attempts to see for himself and angles his head towards his stomach however he can't see anything and it takes him a moment to realise that it's because his eyes are closed and opening them seems like far too much effort to exert himself with at the moment.
But then how did he make out the walls and the floor if his eyes are closed? Kurt wonders. He looks from side to side, he can still see his surroundings but the walls don't seem nearly as white as before. They're blurred and distorted but they're still there. Kurt is engulfed in questions that seemingly have no answer and he can almost feel how hard his brain is working trying to figure out what is going on. He lets his head fall back, unaware that he had even been holding it up and is surprised to find the impossibly soft...something that cushions his head. As far as Kurt can remember the inspection room was anything but soft.
Everything slows down suddenly which, Kurt is vaguely aware, doesn't make sense since nothing is actually happening. He feels like maybe he should open his eyes. It would probably provide an answer to a lot of his questions. He only has the energy to open one, and just a crack at that, however the light that spills through still manages to almost blind him, forcing him to clench it shut immediately. He remembers this…When Blaine had taken him outside, the light blinded him then too.
Suddenly clarification hits him like a punch to the chest. He can't be in the Inspection Room because Blaine saved him, the whole building was destroyed. The facts of the day before rush at him faster than his brain can keep up. Blaine saved him. The lab was on fire. Almost everything was destroyed. Blaine took him away in a strange moving machine he called a car. Sebastian is…somewhere, alive, Kurt hopes. He saw starlings and flowers and daisies and…Kurt unclenches a hand that he hadn't realized he had been clenching. He doesn't chance opening his eyes again for fear of being blinded but he feels around with his thumb, recognising the soft, delicate texture of the daisy Blaine had given him in the field. Yes, he remembers now.
So he was dreaming. Kurt doesn't even try to stop the relief flooding his body and instead allows himself to float in the blissful river of knowing that everything is okay, better than okay in fact, everything is great! He's not back in the lab and even though the pain in his abdomen had been so vivid in his dream he allows himself to relax.
Until the pain is there again.
Kurt snaps his eyes open. The light blinds him and he can feel his eyes watering but he forces them to stay open. The room is a chaotic blur as he looks about the place and pulses of light and shadow seem to consume everything. The shadows become heavier and out of them forms objects until, slowly, the overwhelming light fades. Looking down, Kurt can see perched on his stomach and staring directly at him is the most horrifying creature he's sure he has ever seen. It's covered in hair in patches of black and white and Kurt has never seen anything like it in his life. He does the most instinctual thing he can manage. He screams. It's choked and breathy as he's still waking from the longest sleep he's ever had but the noise must have alerted Blaine as suddenly he's right there besides him.
"Kurt? Kurt! What's wrong?" he hears Blaine ask worriedly while the creature remains unfazed. "Why are you screaming? Chest panting heavily, Kurt swings his head to Blaine, whose eyes are wide with concern. Of course everything isn't okay, Kurt thinks, can you not see that there is a monster on me?
"It's…in my sleep it… It was going to…Blaine please getitoffme," he begs hysterically, nodding his head towards the creature urgently. Blaine seems suddenly to understand as amusement takes over from his concerned expression while Kurt watches, mortified.
"Aw that's just George!" he coos, picking up the creature with one hand as it purrs affectionately, nestling its head into Blaine's chest. "You've probably never seen a cat before, right?" Blaine guesses and Kurt shakes his head, still eyeing the allegedly named 'George' wearily. "He's harmless, Kurt. I promise." Kurt doesn't look convinced but neither does he protest when Blaine falls unceremoniously onto the sofa beside his feet, petting the animal and affectionately cooing. Kurt pulls himself into a sitting position but makes sure to stay on the opposite end of the sofa while this George steals away all of Blaine's attention. He scowls at the cat bundled in Blaine's arms. "You want to pet him?" Blaine asks, oblivious to Kurt's disapproval.
"No thank you," Kurt responds dryly.
"I promise he won't hurt you!" Blaine is almost laughing at this point, making Kurt despise the cat even more.
"It tried to scratch me to death in my sleep."
"He didn't mean to." Blaine's pleading voice is now accompanied by a pout as he slides closer, cat in hand.
"Blaine..." Kurt says, trying to edge away but his defences are falling apart and he finds himself unable to say no to Blaine like this. What's wrong with him? He can't believe how easy it is to act this way now, as if his whole life never happened.
"He just likes having a warm body to sleep on." Their sides are touching now as Blaine still fawns over the cat. "Here, at least say hello!" George mews softly, pawing at Kurt's arm, causing it to turn rigid at the touch. "I think he likes you!" Blaine sings teasingly.
Sighing, Kurt brings his hand up to touch George's fur. It's soft, a lot softer than he imagined. The cat nudges his head against Kurt's wrist playfully as he moves his hand to stroke him gently. So this is a cat, Kurt thinks he can cope with that. He has now learned about two types of animals, though George is nothing at all like Pavarotti to look at. Just as he thinks he might be okay with this new creature, Kurt feels its body delicately rumbling, a strange noise erupting from somewhere inside. He snatches his hand away instantly.
"What's it doing?"
"He's purring, I told you he likes you!" Blaine snuggles into Kurt's side, ruffling George's fur before pressing a kiss to Kurt's cheek. It's surprisingly cosy, even with the cat that Kurt isn't sure if he should be weary of or not. But Blaine likes it so he really has no reason to distrust it. Especially because he's 100% not jealous of the attention it gets from Blaine…
Kurt knows he's being laughably ridiculous though; he has everything he ever wanted! This, with Blaine is more than he ever expected, yet there's something impossibly familiar about the morning that he can't quite put his finger on.
That is until a memory comes to him, faint and barely-there. It's of him and Blaine together on a sofa not too different to the one they are on. They trade lazy kisses while birds flutter about the room. Kurt knows it can't possibly be a memory of something that actually happened, a dream perhaps. Yes, a vague, distant dream he must have had once upon a time but it's just so hauntingly similar to this moment right now.
He wants to kiss Blaine. Not on the cheek like Blaine had to him but on his lips, like before, but somehow it doesn't feel right. Not in this moment. Something has shifted and Kurt has no idea what nor does he even consider bringing it up, instead letting it slide, enjoying the near perfectness of this moment.
It's possible that he drifts off to sleep once or twice though he can't be sure. Kurt has no idea how long they've been sitting there before Blaine lifts his arms in a seemingly satisfied stretch, yawning loudly.
"Ugh, we can't lounge around here all day," he decides, halfway through another long yawn. Untangling himself from Kurt he gets to his feet and cracks the last of his joints. "You want to jump in the shower while I make breakfast?"
Kurt perks up at the mention of a shower. There's one thing he understands at least! It has been a few days since he's had one and if he hadn't had quite so much on his mind recently, he's sure he would be more than disgusted with himself. He follows Blaine to a small room, lingering in the doorway while Blaine picks some bottle from a shelf. It's much different to the showers he's used to. It's significantly smaller for one thing, there's probably only room for one person – maybe two at most – to even fit in the room. Kurt's used to larger communal showers but there's no way that anybody other than him will fit in the tiny cubicle in the corner.
"It's not exactly the most luxurious of showers, but, you know, it has hot running water so…" he says with a slight grimace that Kurt can only assume is from embarrassment. Why Blaine would be embarrassed however, he has no idea. This tiny little bathroom in itself has far more character than the entirety of the Lab. There's evidence that people actually live here rather than simply exist. He'd live in a box if it meant he got to be with Blaine and away from the Lab.
Blaine hands him the bottles, a towel, and some spare clothes before quickly instructing him on how to work the shower.
"I'll be in the other room, just yell if you need anything else," Blaine says with a faint smile before closing the door behind him almost reluctantly. For a moment Kurt doesn't move, his gaze fixating on the spot where Blaine had just left until he remembers how much he really does want a shower. Turning towards the mirror, he gasps at the sight of himself. He hadn't realised how filthy he was. There are black smudges covering his face and he's never seen his hair look so dirty before. He cringes as he runs his fingers through his greasy hair, grimacing at his hand afterwards. The Lab Coats neglected their personal hygiene while they had them locked in confinement.
Kurt checks multiple times that the door is locked before slowly daring to remove his clothes. He's not sure if he'll ever be comfortable while naked, even when he's completely alone. It's impossible to shake the memories. He takes off the generic lab-issued shirt that he's come to think of as part of his own body and gazes pitifully at the dirty porcelain skin in the reflection; he looks like an old china doll that's been left out in the rain and become decayed beyond repair. He doesn't realise he's shaking until his fingers fumble clumsily around the button of his pants. He backs away from the mirror as much as he can in the tiny bathroom before turning his back to it. He can't stop thinking that there's someone behind it, watching, waiting for him to expose himself.
He takes a few moments just to breathe, aware that Blaine may worry if he takes too long. Once he's sufficiently convinced himself that he's alone, Kurt strips off the rest of his clothing but he doesn't dare look down. He just can't look at his body. Not now.
The shower is warm and, stepping under the spray, Kurt lets out the longest sigh of relief. He scrubs at his skin until the dirt is nowhere to be seen but he doesn't stop there. He scrubs and scrubs until his skin is red and raw, frantic to be clean. The memories won't wash away; the shame and the anxiety cling to his skin, refusing to budge. The brief moment of serenity he'd had with Blaine is long gone, simply looking at himself in the mirror was enough of a trigger to bring back everything and no amount of scrubbing can change what has happened to him. Kurt knows this. Frustrated, he shuts off the water and reaches for the towel Blaine left him, eager to cover himself up again.
He dresses quickly, trying to ignore the fact that he's wearing Blaine's clothes and the way they smell like him, and towel dries his hair before going to find Blaine.
"Hi there," Blaine greets when Kurt finds him standing at a counter. There are some parts of Blaine's home that Kurt can somewhat recognise, he has a living space and a bathroom, but this area is completely new to Kurt. There's also an unfamiliar smell in the air; it's sweet and Kurt feels like he could easily become addicted to it. He takes a seat at the table as Blaine delivers two plates of, well, Kurt has no idea what's on them. "I hope you like pancakes!"
In hindsight, giving Kurt pancakes was probably a bad idea. No it was definitely a bad idea. But Kurt, eager to please Blaine, ate the entire plateful without complaint. He had seemed uneasy though, Blaine noticed. As if he wasn't sure if he should even be doing what he was. Blaine however had ignored it, Kurt just needed a little while to adjust, he'd be fine.
While Kurt lies curled up on the sofa, clutching his stomach and groaning in pain, Blaine admits to himself that he's not fine.
He attempts to remain calm as he boils some water for the hot water bottle and tries to piece everything together. Maybe he's allergic to one of the ingredients? He shakes his head at the thought; they'd made sure none of the prototypes had allergies to anything. What could it be then? Maybe his body just isn't used to junk food? He can't know for sure.
"How are you feeling?" Blaine asks gently, sitting beside Kurt.
"Something is terribly wrong with me," he mumbles miserably.
"Here, this might make you feel better." Blaine hands Kurt the hot water bottle though he look unsure of what he's supposed to do with it. "Just hold it against your stomach, it'll help," Blaine explains and he does so, relaxing into the sofa a little. Blaine places a hand atop Kurt's rubbing softly and wishing he could just make him better.
"I really don't mean to sound ungrateful but is it okay if I never have to do that again?"
"Do what?"
"…Eat," Kurt states after a moment's hesitation as if the word was foreign to him. Blaine's hand freezes against Kurt's as realisation suddenly hits him.
Kurt doesn't eat. They must have kept him nourished through some other way at the lab but he's never eaten solid food before. No wonder his body is reacting this way.
"I'm sorry," Kurt says.
"No, no, Kurt, it's not your fault. I shouldn't have…I'm the one who should be sorry." Kurt says nothing as Blaine resumes the soft stroking of Kurt's hand. "You're going to be okay, I promise. Your body just has to…get used to everything."
"What if it doesn't?" Kurt asks pitifully.
"It will. I'm not going to lie to you, Kurt, you're going to get ill sometimes. But you'll get better." The prototypes were never allowed to get ill in the lab. They had been given all sorts of shots and vaccinations to prevent serious illness and there was every precaution in place to prevent them from even catching a simple cold. They needed to be at their best at all times.
Kurt shifts, turning himself so he can rest his head on Blaine's lap and Blaine strokes his hair idly while he thinks. Kurt can't eat solid foods but he needs to eat something. Everything that sustained him while he was at the lab is gone now which means Blaine has to ensure he has everything he needs.
But what if Kurt's right? What if he can't live outside of the lab? What if his body won't adjust? Kurt is an actual, real life, living, breathing human being and it's Blaine's responsibility to take care of him. Swallowing thickly, Blaine wonders how he is only now realising how terrifying that is. He couldn't even keep a hamster alive as a kid so how was he supposed to take care of a person? The only thing that passes through his mind is a continuous string of Ican'tdothisIcan'tdothisIcan'tdothis. Every possible scenario of things that could go wrong make themselves known as Blaine spirals because he can't do this!
Kurt murmurs softly against Blaine's lap causing him to jolt slightly coming out if his panic. Blaine continues to finger Kurt's hair as he begins to realise that he's asleep. He'd been doing a lot of that today, sleeping. Blaine starts counting back the last few days but stops when he realises he doesn't particularly want to know exactly how long it has been since Kurt was fed or whatever they did. Still, there's no wonder he's so tired. He squeezes a hand around his shoulder protectively as he realises just how close he came to losing Kurt. He's all bone though and Blaine is shocked he hadn't noticed how thin Kurt had gotten before. He sucks in a shaky breath, the scope of everything hitting him for a second round. He needs to get some food in him but how can he if all it does is make him ill? He doesn't have the facilities here to keep Kurt alive. He can't take care of him.
"Blaine…" a soft murmur comes from below. Blaine's head snaps down to see Kurt mumbling in his sleep. His face is no longer contorted in pain, instead a faint smile sketched upon his lips and his arms aren't clenched quite so tightly around himself. He looks relaxed, peaceful. And that's all it takes, seeing Kurt there so tranquil without a single care in the world. Sure his temperature is probably a little higher than it should be and his skin is even paler than normal but he'll be okay. They both will.
Forcing himself to breathe again, Blaine manages to calm his mini panic attack without disturbing Kurt. He can't consider the hypothetical when he has real problems that need to be dealt with now.
So Kurt can't eat. At least, he can't eat solids. Blaine makes a mental note to look up liquid diets online. He just needs to take everything one step at a time.
Blaine has to admit that it wasn't the perfect first day that he had imagined. He didn't get to show Kurt the wonders of New York City, they didn't get to have the perfect breakfast together; he didn't even get to take Kurt outside and now the sun has already begun to set on his first full day of freedom.
But Kurt is here and he's alive and safe and that's all that matters. Just because something isn't quite perfect doesn't mean it's worthless.